IJL – Réseau.Press – Acadie Nouvelle
About a year ago, the CFAI FM radio station in Edmundston was navigating troubled waters. Over the past 12 months, she has gone from an unsustainable financial situation to something more bearable.
When he took over as general manager of the radio station in October 2023, Carl Monette inherited a host of problems, particularly on the financial side.
He acknowledges that CFAI has come a long way since that time, even if the road has been winding at times.
“When I arrived, we were two employees. We didn’t even know from week to week if we were going to stay open, because all the accounts were at zero, the cards and the line of credit were full. We owed money to the government and our suppliers. We had two mortgages, etc.”
Mr. Monette confirms that when he arrived, the debt of the community radio station amounted to nearly $450,000.
“The finances needed a major cleaning. The situation was worse than what I had on my financial statements.”
With this in mind, a major expenditure reduction exercise was introduced. The income generated was used in particular to repay debts and pay suppliers.
CFAI was even the subject of a lawsuit from some employees who had not been paid. Part of the revenue was used to settle this matter.
“I’m not saying all the bills have been paid, but we’re back on track. We repaid around $40,000 of debt and $50,000 of our line of credit,” added Carl Monette.
Various subsidies then allowed the general director to hire other employees. There are currently five, in addition to Carl Monette who covers his salary with a portion of the station’s advertising revenue.
Even if it experienced another deficit in 2024 ($39,542), it was much smaller than in 2023 ($176,429).
Mr. Monette also maintains that CFAI could have made a surplus of around $15,000. However, management had to include, in last year’s financial statements, an expense linked to the CFAI Franco Festival – more than $56,000 in artists’ fees for an event that never took place – which had not been not yet been counted.
The CEO of CFAI also believes that if the station managed to sell the building in which it is located, it could repay its debts.
“We try to put the community first, but we have to work with the Canada Revenue Agency, because we want to prevent them from deciding to seize our building. She needs to see progress. To repay, you have to save the radio and the building to be able to sell it.”
Carl Monette is hopeful that the station will not have to close its doors. He admits that it is, however, impossible to predict the future. One thing is certain, the sale of the building housing CFAI would provide a huge boost.
“I can’t guarantee 100% that it won’t close, but the chances are really slim that it will close.”
Getting closer to the community again
The problems at CFAI radio which came to light last year have obviously shaken public confidence in it.
“We had a really good image in the 2000s, but we really haven’t had a good image in the last five or six years. I think it is time to start again on other bases,” confides Carl Monette.
Beyond the financial challenges, an exercise of rapprochement with the community had to be undertaken.
It is through columns with local speakers, programming featuring people from the community, a podcast with a more local flavor and the return of old hands from the radio field in Madawaska, like Donald D’Amours, that this seduction operation is currently unfolding.
In addition to paid employees, volunteers also participate in content creation.
One of CFAI’s objectives is to better define the station, both through its music and its image. A survey is also circulating on social networks. According to Mr. Monette, the idea is to obtain feedback from the public which will better guide the station’s vision.
It works with the firm Convergence, which has a mandate to review its structure.
“We also had help from the CBDC-Madawaska which allowed us to do business with a branch of the accounting firm Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton to put together a budget, prepare our budget forecasts and do follow-ups.”
The formation of a new board of directors is also one of the objectives in 2025.
The CFAI Franco Festival rest in peace
Launched with great fanfare in February 2023, the CFAI Franco Festival promised the people of the North-West a range of artists who would offer performances in three different locations (Casino Gray Rock, Center Jean-Daigle and Salle Léo-Poulin).
When the station’s financial problems were publicized, the festival was put on ice.
Even if he evaluated the possibility of offering it under a different format, Carl Monette confirmed that the event was indeed dead and buried.
“It was too huge for it to work. It didn’t make any sense. We took the time to see if it could be done, but we saw no possibility of doing it again.”
People who bought tickets to the festival were caught off guard. To correct the problem, CFAI has begun its reimbursement work by offering ticket exchanges for shows taking place in the surrounding area.
“I partnered with area shows and offered an advertising exchange for tickets. I then offered them to people who had bought tickets for the festival (…) We always exchange for a value equal to or greater than what people paid.”
To date, 20% of ticket holders have been refunded this way. Mr. Monette recognizes that some of them want a monetary refund.
“My mandate remains to reimburse everyone, but I cannot say when (…) I want to finish reimbursing all festival tickets by the end of the next financial year.”
